View source for Dock Bridge

{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2017}}
{{Infobox NRHP
| name                           = Dock Bridge
| nrhp_type                      =
| image                          = Dock Bridge - Newark, NJ.jpg
| caption                        = Amtrak Dock [[Vertical-lift bridge|Vertical Lift bridge]].
| location                       = [[Passaic River]]<br>[[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]] - [[Harrison, New Jersey|Harrison]]<br>[[New Jersey]]
| coordinates                    = {{coord|40|44|9|N|74|9|43|W|display=inline}}
| locmapin                       = USA New Jersey Hudson County#New Jersey#USA
| map_label                      = Dock Bridge
| label_size                     =
| label_position                 = top
| label_background               = transparent
| built                          = 1935
| architect                      = [[Waddell & Hardesty]]; [[J.A.L. Waddell|Waddell, Dr.J.A.L.]]
| architecture                   = [[Truss bridge|Through-Truss]] [[Vertical-lift bridge|Lift Bridge]]
| added                          = October 3, 1980
| area                           = {{convert|1|acre}}
| refnum                         = 80002484<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2009a}}</ref>
| designated_other1_name         = New Jersey Register of Historic Places
| designated_other1_abbr         = NJRHP
| designated_other1_link         = New Jersey Register of Historic Places
| designated_other1_date         = July 21, 1979
| designated_other1_number       = 1227<ref name=NJRHP>{{cite web|title=New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Essex County|url=http://www.nj.gov/dep/hpo/1identify/nrsr_lists/essex.pdf|publisher=[[New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection]] - Historic Preservation Office|page=12|date=2011-09-06|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170809194220/http://www.nj.gov/dep/hpo/1identify/nrsr_lists/essex.pdf|archive-date=2017-08-09}}</ref>
| designated_other1_num_position = bottom
| designated_other1_color        = #ffc94b
}}
{{Infobox bridge
|fetchwikidata=coordinates
| name                = '''Dock Bridge'''
| carries             = [[Amtrak]], [[New Jersey Transit rail operations|NJ Transit]] (West span)<br>and [[Port Authority Trans Hudson|PATH]] and [[Amtrak]]/[[New Jersey Transit rail operations|NJ Transit]] (East span)
| crosses             = [[Passaic River]]
| design              = pair of [[Truss bridge|through-truss]]<br>[[vertical lift bridge]]s
| num_track           = 3 (West span),<br>3 (East span)
| track_gauge         = {{Track gauge|ussg|allk=on}}
| structure_gauge     = [[Association of American Railroads|AAR]] 
| clearance_below     = {{convert|24|ft|m|2|abbr=on}} (closed)<br>{{convert|135|ft|m|2|abbr=on}} (open)
}}
'''Dock Bridge''' is a pair of [[vertical lift bridge]]s crossing the [[Passaic River]] at [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]], [[Essex County, New Jersey|Essex County]] and [[Harrison, New Jersey|Harrison]], [[Hudson County, New Jersey|Hudson County]], [[New Jersey]], United States, used exclusively for railroad traffic. It is the seventh crossing from the river's mouth at [[Newark Bay]] and is {{convert|5.0|mi}} upstream from it.<ref name=USACE>{{cite web|title=Lower Passaic River Restoration Project Commercial Navigation Analysis|publisher=United States Army Corps of Engineers|date=2010-07-02|url=http://passaic.sharepointspace.com/Public%20Documents/2010-07-29%20USACE%20Lower%20Passaic%20River%20Commercial%20Navigation%20Analysis.pdf|access-date=March 19, 2012}}</ref> Also known as the '''Amtrak Dock Vertical Lift''', it carries [[Amtrak]], [[NJ Transit Rail Operations|NJ Transit]], and [[PATH (rail system)|PATH]] trains. It is listed on the [[New Jersey Register of Historic Places|state]] and [[National Register of Historic Places|federal]] registers of historic places.

==History==
The bridge was built by the [[Pennsylvania Railroad]] (PRR) for its main line. The west span carries three tracks and opened in 1935 along with the west half of [[Pennsylvania Station (Newark)|Newark Penn Station]]. The lift span is {{convert|230|ft|m|0}} over bearings (clear channel {{convert|200|ft|m|0|disp=or|sp=us}}), the longest three-track lift span in the world when built.<ref>{{cite news|title=Newark Dedicates Its New Terminal; New Bridge Also Ready|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1935/03/24/93682031.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 24, 1935}}</ref> The east spans opened in 1937 when the [[Hudson and Manhattan Railroad]] (H&M, later called PATH) shifted its [[rapid transit]] trains from the [[Centre Street Bridge (Newark)|Centre Street Bridge]] to the newly built station.<ref name="NYT 19370620">{{cite news|title=New Station Open for Hudson Tubes|url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0B14FB3A541B728DDDA90A94DE405B878FF1D3|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 20, 1937|page=1}}</ref> With the opening of the eastern span, the PRR closed [[Manhattan Transfer (PRR station)|Manhattan Transfer station]] in the [[Kearny Meadows]], where previously steam and electrical trains were changed and passengers could transfer to trains to [[Penn Station (New York)|New York Penn Station]] on the PRR or to [[Hudson Terminal]] on the H&M.<ref name="NYT 19370620" />

==Description==
The west span carries three tracks exclusively used by Amtrak and NJ Transit for [[Northeast Corridor]] intercity and commuter traffic between Newark and New York City. The east span carries two PATH tracks used by PATH's [[Newark-World Trade Center]] service and one NEC track shared by Amtrak and NJ Transit. Due partly to its use of the Dock Bridge, PATH is legally a [[commuter railroad]] under the jurisdiction of the [[Federal Railroad Administration]] even though it has long operated as a [[rapid transit]] system.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.railwayage.com/safety/siemens-lands-path-cbtc-contract/|title=Siemens lands PATH CBTC contract|last=Vantuono|first=William C.|date=October 27, 2009|work=Railway Age|access-date=June 11, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-151BR/html/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-151BR.htm|title=Amtrak's Northeast Corridor: Information on the Status and Cost of Needed Improvements|date=April 13, 1995|website=U.S. Government Publishing Office|access-date=June 11, 2018}}</ref>

The lower {{convert|17|mi}} downstream of the {{convert|90|mi|adj=on}} long Passaic River below the [[Dundee Canal|Dundee Dam]] is [[tide|tidally influenced]] and [[Navigability|navigable]].<ref name="USACE"/> When closed the bridge has a vertical clearance of {{convert|24|ft|m}} above mean high water and opens to clear {{convert|135|ft|m|abbr=on}}.<ref name="USCG">U.S. Coast Guard, New York, NY (May 28, 2009). [http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-12383.pdf <nowiki>"Drawbridge Operation Regulations; Passaic River, Harrison, NJ, Maintenance. Notice of temporary deviation from regulations."</nowiki>] ''Federal Register,'' {{USFR|74|25448}}.</ref> It is infrequently lifted and, prior to 2014,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/PATHTrain/status/509377125959630848|access-date=September 9, 2014|title=Due to the opening of the Amtrak Dock Bridge, service on the NWK-WTC line is suspended}}</ref> had not received a request for a river traffic opening since 2004.<ref name="USCG" /> In 2011 regulations were changed so that it need not be open on demand (as it previously had<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cfr.vlex.com/vid/117-passaic-river-19757052|title=33 CFR 117.739 - Passaic River|access-date=August 21, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812205238/http://cfr.vlex.com/vid/117-passaic-river-19757052|archive-date=August 12, 2014}}</ref>) but with a 24-hour notice.<ref name=fedreg>{{cite web|url=http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-10-21/pdf/2011-26549.pdf|title=Federal Register (Vol. 76, No. 204) October 21, 2011 Rules and Regulations|website=GPO.gov|access-date=November 18, 2017}}</ref> During four-year removal of dredged materials from the Passaic the bridge is expected to open upwards of 10 times per day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2014/10/amtrak_and_nj_transit_fear_passaic_river_dredging.html|title=Fears that Passaic River dredging could delay rail commuters|website=NJ.com|last=Higgs|first=Larry|date=October 29, 2014|access-date=November 18, 2017}}</ref> In 2020 Amtrak requested that bridge remain in closed position until such time as it can be rehabilitated.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nj.com/news/2020/08/85-year-old-train-bridge-in-newark-delays-riders-amtrak-working-on-plan-to-fix-the-problem.html|title = 85-year-old train bridge in Newark delays riders. Amtrak working on plan to fix the problem|last=Higgs|first=Larry|date = August 15, 2020|website=NJ.com}}</ref>

{{wide image|Dock Bridge Harrison Newark June 2015 panorama.jpg|1500px|The Dock Bridge connecting Harrison and Newark}}

==See also==
* [[Gateway Project]], regional transportation improvement project
* [[List of crossings of the Lower Passaic River]]
* [[List of bridges, tunnels, and cuts in Hudson County, New Jersey]]
* [[New Jersey Transit Rail Operations#Movable bridges|List of NJT movable bridges]]
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Essex County, New Jersey]]
* [[List of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in New Jersey]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Dock Bridge (Passaic River)}}
*[http://bridgestunnels.com/location/dock-bridge/ Dock Bridge] at Bridges & Tunnels
*[http://wikimapia.org/3309877/Dock-Drawbridge-and-Interlocking-Tower Dock Drawbridge and Interlocking Tower] at Wikimapia
{{PATH (rail system)}}
{{New Jersey Transit Rail}}
{{Crossings navbox
|structure        = [[List of crossings of the Lower Passaic River|Crossings]]
|place            = [[Passaic River]]
|bridge           = Dock Bridge
|bridge signs     = [[Amtrak]] / [[NJ Transit Rail Operations|NJ Transit]] / [[Image:PATH.svg|25px]]
|upstream         = [[New Jersey Route 158|Centre Street Bridge]] (removed)
|upstream signs   = [[Image:Ellipse sign 158.svg|25px]]
|downstream       = [[Jackson Street Bridge]]
|downstream signs = 
}}
{{NRHP in Hudson County, New Jersey}}
{{National Register of Historic Places}}
[[Category:Bridges completed in 1935]]
[[Category:Bridges in Hudson County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Hudson County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Bridges in Newark, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Harrison, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Transportation in Newark, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Railroad bridges in New Jersey]]
[[Category:Vertical lift bridges in New Jersey]]
[[Category:Amtrak bridges]]
[[Category:PATH (rail system)]]
[[Category:Pennsylvania Railroad bridges]]
[[Category:NJ Transit bridges]]
[[Category:Railroad bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in New Jersey]]
[[Category:Bridges over the Passaic River]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Essex County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Hudson County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Drawbridges on the National Register of Historic Places]]
[[Category:Rapid transit bridges]]
[[Category:New Jersey Register of Historic Places]]
[[Category:1935 establishments in New Jersey]]